Halo: Innocence
by Renault Bordeaux
Summary: Halo: Innocence is a story about a Spartan disillusioned with the war against the Covenant. His story begins when he is hiding on a colony planet, and happens to save a young girl named Lynn from a fire. This story will explore purpose, existence and war.
1. Chapter 1 Only An Idiot

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 01 – Only An Idiot Would Run Into A Fire

There was a loud noise on the outskirts of town, like a great explosion. The settlers exited their shabby living places and saw a great fire on the horizon, glowing orange in the darkness of night. The dirty people of various ethnicities and diversity asked one another what was going on; no one had any idea. The planet was fertile, made such by the process they used to terra-form the location, but the trees were dry and crackled from lack of rain. The fire was spreading quickly.

A man in a tattered brown cloak was sitting on a bench in the street. He asked the closest man to him, "What's everyone doing? Shouldn't we be getting out of here?"

"Not really," the man said, an elderly gentleman missing most of his teeth, "where would we go? Into the wasteland to the West? The mountains to the South? The oceans to our North? The fire's here, to the East, and we have nowhere else to go."

"The ocean would be better… less trees, more water."

"And let our houses burn? We got nothing but these!"

As they were talking, the elderly man realized something, "Hey, buddy. I don't think I know you…"

The man in the cloak stood up, nearly seven feet tall, and held down his hood to cover his face. The mysterious man quipped, "That a sin, now?"

"Well, we just don't get no visitors here." The old man got closer to him, slightly intimidated by his size, but more curious about his face, "Who are you?"

The tall man walked away from the elderly man, denying him an answer. The fire was nearing the edge of the town, and the cloaked man seemed to be running to the shore, as he had suggested.

"Help!" A shrieking voice called out, piercing out over the sound of the blaze. "Help me, please!"

The cloaked man, as well as everyone else in the town, looked into the blaze, and saw that it had finally hit one of the houses. At first the townspeople thought it was fine, the house was abandoned anyways, but soon they realized the problem: there was a homeless child on the top floor of an abandoned five-story building. She was hanging out of the window, screaming for help. The girl had long, brown hair, dark skin, and seemed to have been living on her own for years.

The tall man in the brown cloak turned away, and looked in the direction of the sea. He seemed to be thinking to himself, trying to decide what to do. As he stood there, the elderly man saw him, and asked, "You got something on your mind?"

He replied to the old geezer, "No. Not really." Then, he took a few steps in the direction of the ocean.

"Help! Please! Help!" The girl screamed again, coughing violently. The townspeople looked up at her, helpless to do anything.

The tall man turned around, sprinting as fast as he could towards her building. His cloak opened, but in the chaos and with his speed, his clothing underneath could not be seen. He kicked in the front door, and climbed the burning stairs. Several of the steps broke beneath him, but he ran up anyways. When he reached the top, he realized he didn't know where she was. He heard the girl coughing, and located her room in seconds. Then, he slammed in her door, and surprised her. The girl turned around, her eyes tearing and face covered in soot.

She asked, "What- Who are you?"

The man, whose hood temporarily fell behind his head, jokingly replied, "Your guardian angel." The girl saw his face, it was covered by a reflective face mask on a metal helmet. The rest of his body was covered by a similar metal armor. She had never seen anything like him.

"My angel?" She asked, confused. The metallic man ran quickly over to her, and grabbed her up into his arms. She asked him, "Are we going to fly, Angel?"

The armored man emotionlessly said, "Of course." He jumped out of the window that she had been hanging out of, and felt the pull of weightlessness in free fall. Time seemed to slow down for the girl, who saw the man's cloak lift up behind his body like two large wings. She truly believed he was an angel. The townspeople looked up, gasping at the sight of a man carrying the small girl jumping out of the window. With the brightness of the fire behind him, they couldn't' tell anything about his armor, and only saw his silhouette; he truly did look like he was flying.

Yet, as all men attest, what goes up will go down. The man began to descend, and the townspeople separated to give them all a space to fall into. Time was speeding up for the girl, her angel was falling, and she was with him. She grabbed onto his metal chestplate, tears still dampening her cheeks, and awaited the pain of the abrupt end of a fall.

Her angel smashed feet-first into the ground, his legs bending, but absorbing the entirety of the fall. She heard some kind of sound coming from his suit when it happened, but didn't know what it meant. She only realized one thing: they had stopped falling. The man quickly released her onto the ground and returned his hood to his head. The townspeople, still confused, were silent as he walked through them towards the sea.

"Wait, angel!" She said to him, "Where are you going?"

He turned to the girl, the townspeople whispering to one another, and said, "To the ocean. Your town will burn, and you need to survive. You should all go to the shore."

All who heard him despaired, but knew he was right. Their town was done for, they needed to rebuild soon. The girl ran to the side of the angel and said, "I'm staying with you."

"I can't take care of a kid."

"I can take care of myself. I've been on my own as long as I can remember."

He saw in here a kindred spirit, another loner who needed someone to help them. The man asked her, "What's your name?"

She said, "Lynn. It's always been Lynn."

He said, "Call me 'Angel'."

…

The man lead the girl to the shore, and the townspeople followed closely. The men and women got to work quickly and setup tents and fires for warmth. The night was nearing dawn, and the fire was close to consuming the entire forest. The moons, in a cloudless sky, reflected over the dark blue sea.

"Hey," the elderly man from before said to Angel, "what's your deal? No one else saw it, but I saw the military grade armor you're sporting."

"Your sight's failing, old man," Angel said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

The old guy snorted, "I was a sniper, a Marine for years, and I know what I saw."

Angel said nothing, but started to walk towards the town.

"Woah!" The old guy said again, "What are you thinkin'?"

"I'm thinking about knocking out an old man."

The old guy frowned and grumbled, "I mean going back in town. Only an idiot would run into a fire. Even with all your armor, you'd be overheated, right?"

"I'll be fine," Angel said quickly. He felt something on his arm, so he looked down and saw Lynn grabbing him. Quietly, he got close to her and asked, "Lynn, what are you doing?"

She was still covered in soot, saying to Angel, "Please don't go! It's dangerous."

"You're pretty smart for your age aren't you?" Angel asked, rhetorically. He sighed and said, "Fine. I'll leave in the morning. But I have to go."

"Go where?" She asked, worried.

He whispered, "To the explosion that started the fire."


	2. Chapter 2 Stay Down

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 02 – Stay Down

The chirping of birds heralded the beginning of the day. Angel didn't sleep, and sat awake all night. Lynn slept quietly and peacefully in his lap. She was simply seeking somebody to love her, and since her guardian angel saved her life, she belonged to him.

"Lynn, get up," Angel said quietly. The girl opened her eyes and smiled behind a dirt-covered face. "It's time for me to go."

Lynn frowned, hugging him tightly, "Please don't."

"I would love to abandon these people. But I know what would happen."

She didn't know what he meant. He saw he confused face, "I mean," he said, "that I have to protect everyone."

The little girl stood up and said, "I'm coming with you."

Angel shook his head, "No. That would be stupid. Stay here, where it's safe."

"But it's not safe, right? You know something…"

He fixed his cloak and hood and stood up, his full near seven feet towering above the short girl. He said, "You really are smart for your age. Fine. Come with me, but do everything I say."

"Okay!" She said, smiling.

…

The town was burned down, just as Angel had said it would be. The charred skeletons of the townspeople's former lives didn't discourage their hope, but strengthened their resolve. There were a few people in the town, going through rubble and searching for their possessions. Mostly, though, people were congregating near their old town hall. It was a wide building, similar to something you would see in a 19th century American town, complete with a bell tower. The original ships the settlers used to land in were dismantled for parts to build the houses they lived in. Now, they had to start nearly from scratch.

"Angel," Lynn asked, as she and Angel walked through the main street of the town, "what is everyone going to do now?"

"Their purpose is to colonize this planet; to make it a community for humans."

"A _community_?" She emphasized the word, a little confused.

Angel glanced down at her, his face in the shadow of his hood, "That's right."

"I don't get it. This was never a community."

The man in the brown tattered cloak looked away from the girl, and at the burnt homes and businesses.

Lynn continued, "I was on my own. Did they help me? Take me in?" She was tearing up again.

"Quit whining," Angel said, "You're fine, aren't you?"

"That's not the point!" She shouted, getting red with anger.

"It's exactly the point. You helped yourself. You found shelter and food and water. You survived. Here you are today, stronger because of it. Don't curse the community. You shut yourself in."

The girl crossed her arms and continued to follow Angel, albeit slowly. She really loved her guardian angel, but she hated his attitude.

…

When Angel and Lynn reached the edge of the town's remains, they faced a burnt forest.

"Lynn," Angel said, kneeling down to her, "Climb up on my shoulders."

She gladly complied, but once there she couldn't help but ask, "Why?"

"There might be embers, and you're barefoot." They were on the eastern side of the town, facing the burned down forest. The ocean, where the campsites had been placed, was to the North, and the mountains could be seen in the distance to the South. The sky was a bright blue, with scattered bits of pure white clouds.

While they walked through the forest's remains, some bits of trees were still smoldering. The wind was also blowing fairly strong, which probably sped the spread of the fire the night before. The smell of smoke and ash wafted through the air.

Lynn tapped on Angel's helmet, "Hey, what's that?"

Angel looked where she was pointing, "What?"

"That!" She pointed her finger in the direction of the southern mountains. Angel looked intently and saw nothing.

"I don't-" He saw a sparkle of light on a ridge on one of the closer mountains. As soon as he saw it, he used his visor's built in mechanism to zoom in. He saw a bipedal figure on the ridge, with metallic features that reflected in the sun. It was positioned oddly, but he recognized what the position was.

"It's a sniper."

Angel sprinted, with Lynn atop her, until finding a small dip in the ground. He placed Lynn in it, after making sure it was safe, having told her, "Stay down, and keep quiet." He reached behind his back, under his cloak, and removed a long weapon with a scope on it. It fit on his back and was easily covered by the cloak.

The tiny girl asked, "What is that?"

"A Battle Rifle. It'll take care of the sniper. Just stay down so he can't see you." Angel took ash from the ground and rubbed it on his armor so that the sunlight wouldn't reflect as easily. He then rubbed ash on his cloak so he would blend in with the burned landscape.

With the brown cloak and soot all over his armor, Angel was able to conceal his presence from the sniper on the ridge. He continued to move south in a diagonal pattern, until he was close enough to make out the sniper's position easily. The Battle Rifle made a mechanical noise when he zoomed in with it. He saw the sniper on the mountainside, but couldn't make out his features; he needed to get closer.

Suddenly, a bright blue plasma beam exploded past Angel's right ear.

"God!" Angel exclaimed, diving back behind a burnt tree trunk. The sniper had located him. He also realized now that the sniper was a Covenant. The soot on his armor and clothes wasn't enough, and his cloak was just too brown compared to the black land. He knew where it was, but he couldn't risk a direct shot to the head. To add insult to injury, if he did manage to get a shot off, the Battle Rifle might not kill the attacker in one hit.

But he didn't need to kill it. Angel came up with an idea. He removed his cloak, and tossed it into the still blowing wind. The wind carried the cloak from beside the tree trunk and exposed it to the sniper. A blast of blue light through the empty fabric showed that the sniper saw it. In the split second that the sniper was distracted by the cloak, Angel came around the opposite side of the tree and aimed the Battle Rifle at the Covenant. From the side, he could make out the horse-head shape of the alien, which indicated it was a Jackal. The Jackal saw the movement, and started to turn, but before it could get a shot off, Angel fired a burst directly into its skull.

The Jackal shot erratically, firing into the scorched forest behind Angel. It gave the calm Angel a chance to let loose more shots into the Jackal's head. After two more shots, the Jackal fell dead. The echo of the last gunshots filled the air, and an eerie silence emanated through the landscape.

…

"Did you get him?" Lynn asked, standing up from the dip in the land.

Angel nodded, "Yeah, but he also messed up my clothes." He lifted the cloak and showed a large hole in the back section.

"Oh no! Are you okay?"

"He hit the cloak, not me."

Lynn smiled and motioned to be lifted up. Angel grabbed her and lifted her over his shoulders, saying to her, "We're going to have to be careful. Covenant are in the area."

"I've heard of them. People in the town always talked about them."

Angel started walking, this time holding his battle rifle out for protection. "I saw what they can do; they glassed an entire planet."

"Glassed?"

"Yeah," Angel explained, "It's when they heat the planet up so much it melts it into glass."

"Why do they do that?" She kicked her feet a little, obviously getting sick of just sitting around. Also, Angel expected she was getting hungry.

He told her, "Basically, the Covenant's religious leaders are to blame. They tell them what to do, and make them kill other alien species who they disagree with."

Lynn took a deep breath and yawned, "All Covenant want to kill us?"

"No, not all of them. Grunts, in particular, are sort of forced to fight. I've also met some Elites who seemed pretty honorable."

"So are we going to win?"

Angel stopped walking, "I told you: they _glassed_ _a planet_. I don't think we've got long against them."


	3. Chapter 3 Remain Vigilant

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 03 – Remain Vigilant

"Are they really that bad?" The young girl, sitting atop the tall man's head asked.

Angel, wearing a brown cloak pushed back by the wind, and still covered in ashes all over, answered her, "Not really. They are stronger than us, but I don't think they're bad. Most just want to kill us."

"That's bad!"

"Is it? How's it any different?" The man in the armor had to watch his step, the logs and burnt trees were dense in the area of the forest they were in. "Before the Covenant came, we were killing each other. Now that they're here, we kill them and they kill us. Either way, people are dying."

"But it is different," The young soot smeared girl, who was getting hungry, said.

The cloaked man sighed, stopping in his tracks, "How?"

"Because we're all together now. Humans are all on the same side."

Angel chuckled, "That's no different. Give it time, and it'll break down like it did before."

Lynn quieted down, and merely rode on Angel's shoulders silently. She was quiet and tried to keep to herself, but Angel could tell she was irritated. "Lynn, I've got water, but I don't have any food. Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, for now."

He took a canteen out from under his cloak and handed it to her, "Will you last for a few more hours?"

"I guess so," She opened the canteen and wildly drank as much as she could. The water ran down her chin, cleaning off the soot, exposing her tanned skin underneath. Lynn asked, "What else do you have under your cloak?"

Angel lifted it and showed her, "I only have some grenades and that canteen," he then motioned to his Battle Rifle, which he had in one hand for the moment, saying, "also the Battle Rifle."

Lynn handed him the canteen back, and he clipped it to a strap on his armor. She asked, "What are we doing here, anyways?"

"I'm looking for the explosion that started this fire."

"Why? It might just be nothing."

Angel grabbed his Battle Rifle firmly with both hands and started to walk again, stepping over burnt logs and making a path through the ash and dirt. "If the Covenant are here, something is going on."

…

It took another hour, but at the edge of the forest it was abundantly clear what had happened. There was a length of ground completely torn apart, like someone took a knife and slashed into the landscape. At the end of the cut was a large broken ship, bluish and purplish in color with several hundred Covenant around it. They were camped similar to the humans on the shore, and they had with them every type of Covenant Angel had ever observed, including the strange jelly-fish looking things Angel had only seen once.

"Lynn," Angel said, taking her off his shoulders, and holding her in front of him, "You need to stay here. They're much too dangerous." He placed her onto the ash-covered ground.

"Okay, but what are you going to do? There's too many of them!"

"I know that!" He whispered loudly, "I need to know what they're doing, or if they know there're humans on this world."

"But if they see you…"

"They won't." Angel fixed his cloak and made sure he was not reflecting light. Then, he left Lynn behind a few burnt logs. He glanced back, before being out of sight, to make sure she was okay on her own. Then, he set out to make his way around the Covenant camp and see what he could find out.

Once he was close enough, and still undetected, he could hear the Covenant talking amongst themselves. The words they used sounded like grunts and whines, but the language was clear to Angel. He located a Covenant whose armor indicated he was the ship's Captain. He got close to him, enough to hear him speaking. He was with another Elite and a Brute.

"But the forest burned down! We can't get any here…" The Captain, an Elite, said.

A nearby Brute, with thick white hair and a large hammer on his back spoke harshly, saying, "The Grunts complain for food. The Hunters seem content, but my own Brutes are getting uneasy. There are talks of eating Jackals."

The Captain growled, "No one will eat anyone! The Jackals were supposed to send out scouts to find food, but they say they lost one of their men. Also, that the food has long since left."

The other Elite, red armored with an energy sword strapped on (though off at the moment), chimed in, "Perhaps this is not an uninhabited planet?"

"Nonsense," the Brute said, "We did tests and found no technology when we got here. We had one reading, but it is most likely an old ship. What we need to do," he said, turning to the Captain, "Is send out more Jackals and just _try_ to hunt some wild game. That will shut my men up."

"Do as you will," The Captain said, "But the ship will be here in two days. We do not really need to get food at all, and there is no indication that we will find anything now that the entire forest is burnt down."

The white Brute nodded, "I understand," and walked off to a group of other Brutes, who cheered when they heard they would be getting food. The Elite that was with the Captain said, folding his arms, "I am still suspicious about this dead Jackal."

"As am I," the Captain said, "But what should we do? If we do have an assailant, it would only intimidate the weak, and the strong would go looking for it. We can not risk losing more forces. To stay together, that is the best course of action."

"I would rather hunt this attacker."

"We do not even know if there is one. Remain vigilant, and perhaps you will be rewarded."

The Jackals were informed of their role to hunt, and they took it begrudgingly. Soon, they had disappeared in all directions. Angel, remembering Lynn, realized he needed to get back to her and take her back to the shore. If the Jackals got to her first, there was no telling what would happen.

…

Angel had a hard time of moving quickly to get back. He couldn't risk being seen, but at the same time, he needed to move as fast as he could. The Covenant would leave in a few days, and if He just kept the humans away from them, an incident could be avoided. The real trick was exactly what the Covenant was dealing with: food. Seafood could probably be gathered from the Ocean, but wild game, like birds, probably took to hiding in the mountains.

When Angel was close to Lynn's position, he didn't see her anywhere around. He didn't want to call to her, because the Jackals might hear it, but at the same time he couldn't leave her.

"Angel," a small voice called. He knew it was near, but didn't know where precisely it had come from.

He whispered, "Lynn?"

"Right here," the voice came again.

He turned his attention upwards, and saw her sitting in the burnt branches of a tree.

"Lynn, that's dangerous. That tree's burned! You could break a leg."

"No, it's still alive, just torched on the outside." She giggled, and then leapt onto his shoulders. With a grunt, Angel made sure she was on him perfectly, then started to run in the direction of the shore.

A series of green bolts fired through the air in their direction. The sound scared Lynn. Angel pushed her down onto his chest, holding her with one arm, and his Battle Rifle with the other. He protected Her with his armored body, and it worked. A few shots actually hit him in the back, but his energy shielding reflected the projectiles. Interestingly, it did no harm to Lynn.

Unfortunately, he couldn't fire back safely while holding her.

"Lynn," He said, while running through the burned trees and green blasts of energy, "I need to put you down to fight them, okay? I promise to get you some food after."

"Just keep me safe," She smiled.

Angel kneeled into a trench and let Lynn down, "Lie down and keep quiet," He said.

"I know. I've done it before," She joked.

…

The forest became quiet rather quickly. The gunfight between Angel and the Jackals calmed down when the Jackals lost sight of the cloaked man. Angel had run and dodged between trees so much that the Jackal's couldn't keep up. Angel was close enough to them to hear their conversation.

"Where is it?" One said.

"It went to the right last I saw" A second one said.

"No, it jumped into a hole, then went back to the left." A third one said.

The conversations among Jackals was not particularly interesting, and Angel was getting bored. He took aim at the back of one's head and opened fire, killing it immediately.

"Over there!" Another one shouted, turning back and shooting at where Angel used to be.

Angel was nearly seven feet tall, but moved like a panther. His predatory nature took over and he was easily able to over power the whole group of Jackals.

"Oh! Okay, take it back to the camp," one of the Jackals said to another, further off.

Angel zoomed in on the ones in the distance, and noticed something odd: was one of the jackals was being carried by the other ones? He moved closer, still hiding among the blackened tree trunks, until he could see clearly. With the sound of a mechanical zoom, he was able to see that the Jackals had a struggling little girl over their shoulders.


	4. Chapter 4 Slim Chance

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 04 – Slim Chance

The loss of a close friend weighs heavy on the heart. Angel did not want to feel that pain. Lynn was carried back to the Covenant camp, and he was in close pursuit. He wasn't sure why, but the Jackals spared Lynn. The cloaked man covered up his armor and gun with the fabric, making sure to stay at a safe distance from the Jackals. He heard some of them talking.

"She is scrawny for a human. Do you think there are any more?"

"Maybe; she'll do for now."

"I have never seen a human child before."

"Yes, they look like Grunts."

The words they spoke were in their own language, but Angel understood it well enough. He couldn't tell the difference between them; all Jackals looked the same to him.

"The Captain will want to see it."

"Yes. He should be happy."

Angel checked his Battle Rifle, and noticed the ammo was running low. He couldn't just kill all the Jackals with the last of it, and he didn't have any more ammunition. Honestly, the Covenant didn't know it, though, so he had a good idea.

…

"And why did you bring this to me?" The Captain asked the Jackal team.

The Jackal in charge said, "You asked for food, and we brought you food!"

"Idiot!" The Captain shouted, smacking the Jackal to the ground. "We do not eat our enemies! Are we savages?"

The Jackal whimpered, "But, look, it is a child."

"All the more reason that we can not eat it!" The Elite Captain was furious, his jaws moving violently and menacingly in the face of the Jackal as he spoke.

The Elite with red armor, carrying an energy sword, touched the shoulder of the Captain, "Sir, we understand."

Growling, the Captain looked the Elite in the eye, and the Elite removed his hand from the Captain's shoulder. The Captain shouted, "We can not eat a child, even if it is the child of our enemies. We are the holy ones, chosen, and blessed among the stars. We should behave like it." The Captain, frustrated with the rest of the group, retreated into his tent.

The white Brute, carrying a large hammer on his back, asked the red armored Elite, "What is the matter with him?" He approached the Elite, using a very casual tone.

"I do not know. It does not matter. He is absolutely correct." The Elite saw Lynn, her eyes scared and shocked at the alien's appearance, and he said, in English, "Are you all right, little one?"

Lynn, shivering, nodded in reply.

"Do not be afraid, child. We mean you no harm."

"Then why was the other guy yelling so much?" She asked, fearing consequence.

The Elite sighed, "He has his issues with our brethren." He motioned to the Jackal, who was still reeling from being struck. "That one was not very wise."

Lynn didn't understand, but she was relaxing.

The Brute got close to the Elite and shouted, in their native tongue, "We should eliminate her. Eating her is out of the question, I understand that, but she is an enemy and should be destroyed."

"Really?" The Elite asked, returning the ferocious tone of the Brute, "And who will kill her? You? There is dishonor in killing an enemy child, not honor. What would you expect to gain in this life? Satisfaction?"

"I expect to gain respect for doing my duty. We must obey the Prophets and kill the enemy at all cost. This is out duty."

"What is duty without honor?" The Elite asked, shifting his gaze to the frightened child. He told her, again in English, "Calm down, child. I give you my word you will be safe. But for now, you must come with me."

The Elite took Lynn by the hand and lead her into part of the now broken ship. Covenant that appeared like jelly-fish (Engineers) were at work repairing it, but without supplies from another ship, it was futile.

From behind them, the Brute shouted, "You forsake your duty, in view of your selfish pursuit of honor!" He allowed the Elite to continue, despite his anger at the situation.

Lynn asked the Elite, "Why was the monkey mad at you?"

The Elite chuckled, "monkey," and then cleared his throat. He said, "That one was upset that I did not kill you. Do not worry; he will not either. He said that duty was what was important. I said honor was what was important."

The girl asked, "What's honor?"

The Elite was surprised, mostly that no one had explained honor to her. "Honor is your worth based on your actions. If you do good actions, you are honorably good. Do you understand?"

"And what's duty?"

"Do your human masters not teach you?"

"What?" She had no idea what the alien meant.

The Elite was patient, and respected the girl's question, saying, "Duty is your moral commitment to act in a certain way."

"So," She was thinking aloud, "One guides you acts, and the other says what you do is worth something, right?"

"Right," The Elite said.

"Then, don't you need both?"

The surprise on the Elite's face was interesting, because it looked a lot like a human's. The Alien stared at the girl, then said, "You are much smarter than your age."

"I have heard that, yes," Lynn said, smiling.

…

Like a bird of prey, Angel was watching all the events from within earshot. However, the Elite took Lynn far into the interior of the broken ship, where Angel was unable to hear them any longer. Most likely, he assumed a way into the ship was made available from multiple locations thanks to the crash.

He waited until there was an opening, then made his was around the front of the crash. Sure enough, an opening into the interior of the ship was still there. He slithered into the opening, careful to watch out for any guards. It seemed like the majority of people were outside of the ship. The reason was clear: crew quarters and engines were the two main areas damaged in the crash.

"I did not expect the child to have a parent," a voice called.

Angel turned his head and saw, on the other side of a great hall, the Elite standing with Lynn.

Lynn grinned, waving, and said, "Angel!"

"Angel?" The Elite laughed, "Are you the gods' messenger?"

Angel removed his cloak, Battle Rifle, grenades, and canteen and left them in a pile. He then stepped into the center of the great hall, saying nothing.

The Elite let go of the girl, and stepped towards the human male. He removed his energy sword and tossed it at the human. Angel ignited it, the light of the sword piercing the darkness in the center of the large and empty room. The Elite grabbed a spare sword he had with him and turned it on also. The sound was intimidating to Lynn, and so she clung to the far wall in fear.

"I tell you, messenger, that as the enemy of the Covenant you do well to stay away from us."

Angel was reminded of the many Elites he had met throughout his life. He was reminded of the painful memories of losing men and women under his command to these unknowable adversaries. He simply said, "You would do well to calm yourself."

The two enemies did not attack. They simply walked slowly in a circle. It was like watching two lions about to fight; as they waited for the other to take the first move, they debated doing it themselves.

"Messenger, you do not understand. I am not angry at you. I hold no ill feelings."

"And yet you have a sword ready to fight me."

"Correct," The Elite said, still circling, "But that does not mean we must be uncivil."

Angel was the first to make a move. He lunged at the Elite, swiping horizontally, which the Elite dodged by jumping over the man's head. As the Elite flew over the man, the alien prepared to land and turn, smacking the blade into the back of the armored man's head. Angel knew the move, and moved his blade to intercept, which it did. The two blades smashed together in a loud sound, sparks flying about the dark room, and the bright burning of the swords illuminating the faces of the two fighters.

The Elite stared into the mirrored helmet of the human, saying, "You have fought my kind before."

"Yes. Long ago."

"And you hold a grudge?"

Angel pushed the Elite back with the sword, "No. I just know my people are doomed."

"How can you say that?" The Elite asked, returning Angel's push with his own forceful shove. "Hope is a powerful tool, a force multiplier that warriors can not do without."

Angel looked into the illuminated face of the alien, and sneered, "Reality is worth more than fantasy."

The Elite shoved Angel quickly, then stabbed at his face. However, Angel swiped the stab to the side, and turned his body, kicking at the Elite's torso. The Elite saw the kick, and took it to be pushed back. Once he was pushed back, he let Angel land and the two of them returned to their circling routine.

"You have an interesting way of looking at things," The Elite told him. "I wonder if your heart has been corrupted by grief?"

Angel let his guard down for a minute, and the Elite saw it. He could have struck, but did not. Angel, noticing this, lifted his guard again. He asked, "Why didn't you strike?"

"It would be taking advantage of a weakness. That is dishonorable."

"Honor? Who cares about honor in light of victory? The girl's life is on the line."

The Elite sneered, "Honor is everything. That is what you are worth." He asked, "Where do you place your worth?"

Angel glanced at Lynn, then back at the Elite, "Others."

The Elite stopped moving and briefly asked, "Other people?"

"Yeah. By myself, I'm worthless. But in the view of other people, I can be worth so much more. It doesn't matter if everyone knows me or one person knows me. As long as one person cares about me, I have value in society."

Angel's words echoed in the mind of the Elite, and the alien said, "I do not understand."

"No, you wouldn't. Your concept of family is to accept the strongest as your sire."

"We are a strong people because of it."

"And a loveless one," Angel said, snidely. He turned off the energy sword and tossed the handle to the floor. The Elite saw it. Staring at it, he was about to ask why, but Angel's fist had slammed into his face. The human was quick, and as the Elite fell to the ground, his jaw hurting from the punch, his energy sword fell to the floor. Angel snatched the sword and held it to the Elite's head, saying, "Yield."

"I would rather die."

Angel stabbed into the ground next to the Elite, the sparks flying high into the air. He pulled the sword back and held it again to the alien's neck.

"Yield."  
The Elite, closing his eyes said, "Kill me."

"Why should I?"

"I would rather die than lose my honor."  
The human laughed, "Haven't you learned anything?"

The Elite had a questioning look in his eyes.

"Simply put," Angel said, as Lynn ran over to him, "What good is your honor, your value, if there's nothing to put the value to? If you died, who would get your honor?"

The Elite said nothing, and Angel turned off the energy sword. He tossed it to the Elite and said, "I spare your life, but in exchange I ask for one thing."

"What do you ask?"

The armored human walked to his pile of goods and began attaching them to his body again. He said, "Food for the girl."

"Actually, that is why she is in here. The remains of our food reserves are in this ship, and I suspected she would like some."

The Elite stood up, and asked, "I wonder if I might ask you something?"

"You mean something else?"

"Right."

He allowed a question. The Elite asked him, "If you believe your people are doomed, what good will your value be. What good are all the other people that love you if they die?"

Angel placed Lynn on his shoulders, and said, in the Elite's own language, "I hope to save as many as I can, but let's be honest, we have a slim chance."


	5. Chapter 5 Take What You Can

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 05 – Take What You Can

The Elite in the red armor, who carried an energy sword, lead Angel and Lynn through the broken ship to find their food stores. He opened a large metal sliding door, which revealed an empty room with a box on the far end. Several empty boxes were piled by the doorway, and Angel noticed the boxes were metallic.

"The last of our food stores is there," The Elite said, motioning to the box lying on the far end. "The Brutes ate most of the food within hours of crash landing. They thought they would need the strength to survive."

Angel took Lynn by the hand, as the girl was now walking with them, and helped her to the box. Inside the metal box was something like beef jerky. Lynn lifted a strip of it to her mouth and tasted it. She seemed to like it. Angel, however, didn't want to ask about it, fearing it was something disgusting.

The human, wearing his military grade armor and helmet, covered by a large brown cloak with ashes smeared about, looked very out of place with a young girl and alien. The Elite asked, "What are you anyways, messenger?"

"What?"

"Are you a part of the human military?"

Angel sat down on the floor, his back against the far wall, "Not anymore. I was. I was part of the Spartan-II program."

"I am not familiar with that."

"I'm not surprised," The human said, glancing over at the small girl who seemed to be enjoying her food. "They were very secretive."

The Elite closed the door, and leaned against it on the inside. He crossed his arms and asked, "What did you do? Or can you not talk about it?"

"I can, but I won't."

"Bad memories?"  
"Very much so."

Lynn finished the strip of meat and had no desire to eat anymore. The Elite opened the door for them, but they were surprised to se another Elite standing in the door, followed by several more Elites. The one in front was the Captain, and he was surprised to se the other Elite inside with two humans. He glared at the Elite.

The Captain shouted in their language, "Who is that?" He pointed at Angel.

"Captain," The Elite said to him, "The human cares for the girl, and protects her. He simply came to get her back."

The other Elites who were with the Captain, looked at one another, whispering some things behind the Captain's back. The Captain looked at them and they were quieted. He returned his gaze to the Elite in red and said, "He is the enemy. It is obvious by his armor."

"Yes, he is. But he is honorable. I fought him and he spared my life."

"He spared you? Is that not a fate worse than death? Count your blessings that he did not wound you." Angel understood that Elites considered blood to be unclean, or something like that. He had avoided cutting the Elite simply for that fact.

The red Elite stepped between the Captain and the human, saying, "Sir, he is friendly and shows great love for the child."

"Love?" The Captain asked, "What does love have to do with anything?"

"Then consider the loyalty he has shown to her."  
The Captain stopped speaking, and stared at Angel. Angel noticed his armor was pure white. He asked Angel, in English, "Why did you spare him?" He meant the other Elite.

Angel stood tall and held Lynn behind him. He told him, "He showed great honor. I couldn't take his life and deprive your people of such a great warrior."

"If he was so great, why did he lose to you?"

"Because," Angel said, "he respected me the same way." The human nodded at the red armored Elite.

The Captain looked at the red-armored Elite and said, "Major," referring to him, "escort them away from our camp. Let them free, and return to your station."

"Yes, Captain." The Major took the two of them with him, and walked past the Captain and the two other Elites. It was clear they came to get the rest of the food reserves, as the Jackals had been unsuccessful in finding wild game. It was just bad luck that Angel and Lynn were there when they showed up.

As they walked down the hall to the opening in the camp, the Major told them, "Stay close, and do not look anyone in the eye."

The sunlight was bright compared to the inside of the ship. As the three of them walked through the camp, the Covenant posted around the area were amazed that the Major had taken two enemies captive. They assumed he was leading them to their death, but one of them was not so convinced.

The white Brute that had given them trouble before approached the Major, saying, "You take them to their death?"

The red-clad Elite, leading the two humans, said nothing. It was enough, though, for the Brute realized what was happening. He shouted, "You show weakness!"

The Elite stopped and stared at the Brute, returning his shout, "Would you prefer I was an animal?"

"Are you calling me an animal, you weakling?" The Brute returned the shout. It was obvious that the Covenant around were not so calm. The Elites began to encircle the group, standing behind the Major, while the Brutes stood behind the white Brute. Angel got a chance to look at the Brute close up, and noticed the armor he wore was a dark blue color, indicating he was the same rank as the Major.

The Covenant were taking sides quickly, with the Jackals siding with the Brutes, and the Grunts afraid to take any sides. The Hunters stood at a distance, their large forms menacing compared to everything else.

Angel said, quietly, "Lynn, jump onto my back."

Lynn complied, and jumped on his back. They both knew what was coming.

The white furred Brute struck first, swinging his massive hammer at the Elite, but missing. The Elite dodged, but one of his men was injured by the swing.

"Men, it looks like we get to fight!" The Major shouted. The other Elites whipped out their energy swords and shouted. The Brutes took steps back, intimidated, but their leader tossed a plasma grenade at the Major. He rolled out of it, but some of the other Covenant were unable to react in time. When the grenade exploded, the entire group began fighting.

In the chaos, Angel took the chance to throw several of his grenades at the group of brutes. The Elites seemed to understand he stood with them, and so they allowed the humans to escape. Angel found a dead Jackal on the outskirts of the camp, no doubt killed in the cross fire. He took its weapon, a purple colored weapon that fired green bolts of plasma. It was known to humans as a Covenant carbine. He dropped his Battle Rifle to swap out the two guns.

"Angel, we need to leave!" Lynn shouted as the Hunters began firing their green plasma into the fighting crowds. The explosions that resulted were so loud that Lynn's ears were ringing.

Angel took the girl into the burned forest, running as fast as he could away from the Covenant camp. He didn't know what was going to happen, but he knew the humans on the shore line were in danger of repercussions. They must be informed of the danger, and directed into the mountains to hide.

…

The town was quiet, but the people were scared. They saw explosions on the far side of the forest, and heard the fighting. Most people had no idea what was going on. When Angel emerged from the torched forest, covered in ash and carrying the girl and a Covenant weapon, they knew what was going on.

The old man from before asked Angel, "Covenant?"

"Yeah. They're here."

"I see that," The man said, pointing at the forest. Three Jackals who had been chasing the humans ran into the town, opening fire at their target human. Angel tossed his last grenade at the group, killing all three simultaneously.

"You see the problem I'm having." Angel continued to carry Lynn, and took off into the camp, he told the people, "Covenant have shown themselves. We need to get to the mountains and hide in the cliffs."

The old man caught up with them, breathing heavily, "What about all our goods?"

"Take what you can. We need to keep hidden for a while. They're expecting reinforcements in two days to help them get out of here."

…

The group of humans moved quickly. They took their tents and goods and followed the old man into the mountains. However, Angel came up the rear with Lynn, as he was the only one with a functioning weapon. In the distance, smoke and plasma fire could still be seen from the Covenant crash site. The people figured out for themselves that the Covenant were the reason the forest caught fire and the reason their town burned down.

The wind was blowing as they made their way through the town and to the southern mountains. They were moving parallel with the forest, and so there was still a danger of Covenant forces emerging.

"Wait," Angel said to Lynn, "That's odd." He noticed the firefight had ended. The Covenant were no longer fighting among themselves. It seemed the battle was over.

Lynn asked, "Who won?"

"Good question," Angel replied.

The humans made their way through the town without issue, and reached the mountains. From the higher ground, they would be able to se anyone coming, and Angel would be able to fire back at them. The entire group reached a ledge, overlooking the town, and began to settle. They started to relax, when Angel approached from the rear.

The old man walked over and shouted, "Now what?"

"It's simple," Angel said to them, "You need to decide whether you want to stay or not."

"Stay?"

The cloaked human walked over to Lynn and handed her his canteen. It was empty, but she could find someone to fill it for her. "Stay on this planet."

The elderly man with most of his teeth missing said, "You want us to leave? All our ships were salvaged for parts!"

"I still have my ship," He said, "It's on the other end of the mountain range. I could get the emergency beacon working and get some help over here."

Some of the people liked the idea, others didn't. The problem was that they were running out of time. Angel glanced at the burned remains of the town and saw several figures in the debris. The Covenant fight ended with the Brutes coming out on top. Several of them, including the white one, walked casually around in the broken landscape.

"Everyone, quiet!" Angel shouted. The townspeople quieted down and looked at him for guidance. He continued, "The Covenant are in the town. They're looking for us. It'll be a matter of time before they trace us up here, so it's time to decide. Those of you who want to stay here, find a cave somewhere in the mountains to hide in. Those of you who want to come with me to my ship, follow me."

Of course, Lynn was the first to jump up. She grabbed his arm and said, "I'm coming!" He looked at her, then back at the people. A few of them stayed, but most sided with him to go to his ship. The old man stayed behind.

"I been living here since it started," the old guy said.

Angel asked, "I thought you were a marine?"

"That was a lifetime ago," the old man replied, "But I got skills to fight, and I can help protect these people."

"Just get going to a cave," Angel told him.

The old guy lead a team of them further into the mountain range, trying their best to stay between the peaks. Before they were out of sight, the old man saluted Angel, who returned the salute.

The remaining people looked at Angel, who glanced back at the town. He saw the Brutes were moving in their direction. In front, Angel noticed a Brute carrying a large metal hammer which seemed very angry; the Brute had a cut on his arm, likely the result of his fight with the Major.

"We need to move, people," He said to them. "Those Covenant are headed this way!" Angel prepared his Covenant Carbine, and fit his cloak onto himself carefully.

The townspeople, a group of tent and backpack carrying wanderers, were running out of supplies fast. They set out in a line, Angel at the front, followed closely by Lynn, and then the rest of the people with them, about one hundred of them in total. There were enemy troops at their rear, and honestly, Angel had no guarantee his ship still worked. He knew the Brutes were angry, and they would not stop until they had blood.

But there was another problem: even if the ship worked, and he got the beacon up and running, the ship was a simple Pelican; a drop ship for a small number of troops. It couldn't hold all the people with him. They were being pursued by Brutes, after all, and the group probably moved faster than a hundred civilians. When they stopped at the Pelican, the Brutes would catch up, and there was nothing they could do about it.

Angel glanced down at the young girl behind him. She was soot-covered and barefoot, but she seemed to be fine on the rocky ground. He saw her facial expression, noticing she was bothered, so he said to her, "Don't worry, Lynn. Everything will be okay." He felt bad lying to her.


	6. Chapter 6 Purpose

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

WARNING: This chapter contains a lot of discussion. It may bore some of you to tears, but my purpose is to ask questions about the universe.

Chapter 06 – Purpose

With about a hundred people in tow, Angel was trying to move quickly across the rocky terrain. Women and children were with them, and the sun was beating down on them, burning brightly in the sky.

"Angel," the young girl next to him said, "where is your ship?"

The man, cloaked in a brown hood and covered in ash, checked his helmet's build in HUD. "Not much further. Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah," Lynn said. She asked, "What's that noise?"

Angel stopped walking, and in turn everyone behind him did as well. He heard it too, but he didn't know what to make of it. "I don't know, Lynn." He waited for a moment, to see if he could hear it again, but he couldn't. Figuring it was best to keep moving, Angel lead the people to walk again.

The Brutes were undoubtedly on their trail. It wasn't hard to tack about a hundred people, let alone in a dust-covered mountain side. The orange and yellow rocks they were stepping over were the last remnants of the planet's terraforming. When the planet was "complete", the terraforming technologies were taken up and moved to another planet that would need them. The colony was left to its own.

Lynn tapped him on the shoulder, "Angel, are we in danger?"

"I told you, we'll be fine." The armored man was unable to look her in the eye. She noticed it.

"Do you think there's an afterlife?"

Angel sighed, "Is there a point to this?"

"That's what I'm asking," She said. "Is there a point in living?"

"That's not the same thing."

"What?" She was confused.

"'Is there an afterlife?' and 'Is there a point in living?' are two different questions. They're not really related. There could be a point in life without there being anything beyond it."

She kicked a small rock with her barefoot. It was a bad idea, and she yelped in pain. Angel knelt down, and let her climb on his back. The girl hugged his metallic back from outside his cloak and continued their discussion, "Do you think there's a point in life?"

"Some people believe we make our own purpose; you decide what you want to do and do it and that's your purpose in life. But I don't know," He was being awfully talkative. Lynn picked up on it, and realized their situation was worse than she thought. "Maybe there is a purpose, maybe everything is already decided, and we simply act within the confines of the laws we can't see. Maybe there's a god."

"Like a creator?"

"Yeah. I heard it said that it's impossible for infinity to pass. If the Universe was infinitely old, and had no origin, how could that amount of time pass?"

She said, "I dunno."

"Right. But it's also been pointed out that thinking like that simply exists in the human mind, and reality isn't bound by out perceptions of it. Just because you can't conceive it doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

"Like god?"

He looked behind himself, trying to see the girl hanging on his back, "Yeah. I guess so."

"She tightened her hold on him, "Well, you are my guardian angel after all."

They had to climb over another hill, and people were starting to complain. He told them that if they slowed down, the Brutes would catch up. They had no choice. Their survival depended upon it.

Lynn told him, "But if there was no purpose from the beginning, why do people even bother making a purpose? They should feel free to have no purpose."

"But," The man said in reply, "If they decide to have no purpose, it's a purpose in its own right."

"Are you saying we're trapped in purpose?"

The armored man chuckled, checking his HUD for the distance to the ship, "Not really. I'm saying that 'purpose' is a word meaning your goal in life. Since we can't know the goal for our life if god does exist, we can know our goal we set for our life. It's as if there was no purpose for us even if there was one."

"Because god's so far away."

"Yeah," Angel continued, "If god did exist, he is so far beyond us that if he does have a purpose for us, we can't expect to know what it is. Simply, we live in a world where it seems like he doesn't exist, even if he does." The ship was just over the hill they were on. "The same goes for our purpose in life. If god made one for each of us, we can't know what it is, and live as if we don't have one. But that, in itself, makes a goal for us. Life is movement and action, not inaction. Any time you try to refrain from action, it's impossible in life. Only in death will we cease to have purpose."

…

The view from the top of the hill was amazing. At the end of the thin mountain range was another forest before them. In it, the chirping of birds and sound of running water was flowing to their ears.

"The Pelican's covered in branches and vines near the center of the forest. There's a section of cave at the base of the mountain," He motioned to the mountain closest to them. "In the cave we'll all be able to fit. It's part of a larger system underground. We can hide out there while a few men go to hunt, others go to gather berries and fruits, and still others go to get water from the stream." The people agreed with him, and so he lead them down the hill to the base of the mountain.

The cave mouth was large and wide, and the inside seemed to go on forever. It sloped downward and the darkness was almost suffocating.

"Okay." Angel looked at the massive group of human before him. He split them down the middle. "Those of you on this side," He motioned to his right, "Go and place your things inside the cave, then go hunt, gather, or get water. Divide into teams. I don't want anyone on their own. Be back in an hour!" They agreed and moved to do what he said.

"As for you," He said to the remaining group, "Go deep within the cave and find a good spot for our tents and fires. We need fire inside the cave to se, or we'll be lost. Make sure the fire can't be seen from the outside." The group remaining agreed also, and moved inside the cave.

Lynn was the only person left, looking at the stalagmites and small crystals on the walls of the entrance. "Lynn," Angel said to her, "Come with me."

The girl ran to his side, and followed him as they walked into the forest. "Where we going?"

"To get the beacon up and running."

As they walked into the forest, the girl picked some flowers and weaved them into a crown. She put them on her dark hair and smiled, like she thought she was royalty. Angel shook his head and told her, "Stay close. The Brutes were behind us. There's no telling where they are now."

"Will everyone else be okay?"

"If they stay inside the cave, then yes. If not, then no."

The girl frowned and looked at her feet as she walked. He toes didn't hurt from kicking the rock anymore, but her little feet were very dirty from walking around barefoot. She said, "You never answered me about the afterlife."

Angel was quiet, and looked up into the trees. The canopy was beautiful with the sun shining through the leaves. The green and gold colors shined all about, and insects seemed to be rare. He noticed birds were near, and saw several small mammal-like creatures.

"I don't know, Lynn."

"You don't know what?"

He looked at the small girl, "I don't know if there is an afterlife. I sort of hope so, but if there is it means that heaven and hell are both real."

"Why can't there just be heaven?"

"You don't think hateful murderers deserve heaven, do you?"

Lynn shook her head.

Angel continued, "And what about genocidal killers? Serial rapists?"

Lynn again shook her head.

"Then who does deserve heaven?"

"Good people!" She shouted.

Angel put his hands up, one of them still holding his Covenant Carbine. "Quiet!" He said, speaking in a whisper. "If we do have a purpose, which I'm convinced we do simply due to human nature, then violating that purpose would be tantamount to evil, right?"

"But you said that people who make no purpose still have one. So if someone does bad, isn't that their purpose?"

"Purpose, if you do make it for yourself, is given to all men and women. That means you have no right to overstep another person's rights. If you have a purpose to build a house, you can't build it by killing off a man's family. His purpose may have been to live happily with his family."

"I see," She said, "So the fact that we all have purpose is something…" She couldn't think of the word.

"It means that everyone is equal before existence. Since we all have it, infringing on another's rights can't be a right. Likewise, a purpose can't be to ruin another person's purpose." She was confused, and it was clear. Angel asked, "What don't you understand?"

They were near to a stream, and Lynn ran over to it and dipped her feet into the water. She cleaned them off and said, happily, "Does that mean good is when you live without hurting others, and evil is when you hurt others?"

"Maybe," He said, kneeling down next to her. He looked the girl in the face, and she looked back into her golden reflection on his helmet. "But if good and evil are objective based on purpose, than god is not so implausible."

"Implausible?"

"Well, if something is 'not so implausible' then it means it might actually exist."

She smiled, "So god exists?"

"Most likely," Angel stood up and held his Covenant Carbine near to him. "We have to keep moving. We don't have all day."

Lynn kept step with him through the forest. There were no paths, but it was mostly just grass, flowers, berry bushes, and trees. The terraformers probably didn't drop any thorn bushes or poisonous plants.

Angel was worried he had messed the girl up, so he added, "The thing is, if god exists and we have purpose that is objective, even if its just because all people have it, then the good and evil we should run by is the one based out of god."

They were getting near the Pelican, and while he enjoyed talking with her about these things, he was afraid they were over her head. "Think about the Elite from before."

"The one who helped me?"

"Right. Him. He has a purpose just like all of us. If we all have purpose and can't not have purpose, then where did that purpose come from? Was it simply the fact that laws of existence dictate purpose?"

She tilted her head, not understanding the last phrase.

"Was it that because we exist, we have purpose? Kind of like because we exist we have space or time?"

She nodded, not really wanting to add anything.

"If purpose does come from something, and the question of 'why' can still never be answered by science, then god is a good solution to the problem. But the reprocussions of admitting god exists requires we also admit good and evil exist, and that god is the source of good."

"What are you saying?" Lynn asked.

"I'm saying that god must be the source of good and heave is only for those like god."

"So to go to heaven, you have to be good like god?"

"Probably."

She shook her head, "That doesn't make sense. What if god was evil?"

"Is it better to exist than not exist?"

"I think so," She said, adjusting the flowers on her head.

"Then why would everything exist, then? If he was evil, wouldn't he not make anything at all, and simply live his life in personal bliss?"

"Maybe he needed something to torment?"

"What would an all powerful god need to torment? Simply tormenting himself would be enough. Infinite torture to infinite pain sounds pretty evil to me."  
She didn't talk, but contemplated all the things he had said to her. Lynn's tanned face was still a little dirty, but Angel didn't care. She could look however she wanted.

"Lynn," He said, looking at her. The girl returned his look, and he said, "Thanks for listening."

She asked, "Why have you been talking so much about god and purpose?"

"Because," He said, grimly, "There are no atheists in foxholes."

"Are you afraid?"

He did not answer, but it was clear that he was. If the Brutes wiped out the other Covenant, one single Spartan with a Covenant Carbine wouldn't be enough. They had to last nearly two days in a cave and not be killed. The people were getting sick of it, and the other group was most likely running low on supplies in the cave they were hiding in.

Lynn hugged Angel, tightly, and said, "It's okay. As long as you do good and the Brutes do evil, they'll get what coming to them."

Angel knew she was right, but also knew he would rather that what they got happened in this life and not the next. His HUD indicated they were right next to the ship, but the foliage was so thick.

"Lynn, the ship should be right here," He said. The problem was that they couldn't see it with all the growth in the area.

The girl noticed a shimmer of light, "Right there," She pointed at a metallic fragment in the dirt. Angel ran over to it, and saw it was a piece of the Pelican. Nearby, he saw a larger piece this time under a bush. He grabbed the bush, uprooting the entire thing easily, and there he saw the Pelican's back door. It was partially buried and covered in vines.

"How long have you been on this planet?" She asked him.

He pointed at the Pelican, "Not long."


	7. Chapter 7 I Could Ask You The Same

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter 07 – I Could Ask You The Same

The Pelican was buried, but the inside of the ship was still in good condition. Angel opened the ship up and climbed inside. It leaned forward, towards the front windshield. Lynn stayed outside of the ship, peering in the opening left by Angel's entrance.

"I see it," He told her. "The beacon's right here on the dash." He fumbled around the inside of the Pelican, thrown off by the unusual gravity. He pressed the switch for the emergency beacon, and sure enough, a small red light started to blink slowly on the dashboard. Within seconds, a single message appeared, with a chime, on the HUD. It said, "CONTACT MADE."

Lynn heard the sound and asked, "What was that?"

"There's a ship nearby," Angel answered her.

In pressing a few buttons, he realized video communication was still down. However, audio was fine. He activated it and heard the crackling of the EM frequency.

The person on the other end said, "This frequency is for UNSC use only."

"This is a UNSC Spartan unit located on a colony planet. Covenant activity has been observed in the area."

"Which Covenant force are you encountering?"

"We are being pursued by Brutes," He was unsure why that was even an issue. "They are closing, and we have several civilians in tow. The Covenant expect reinforcements in a day and a half."

The person on the other end said nothing, seemingly relaying the communications. Angel glanced back at Lynn, who was balanced at the entrance, looking in. The Pelican's communicator roared, "Expect a ship to come for you in 24 hours."

"And the civilians?"

"We'll get them also. Helljumpers will be deployed early on if Brute forces are seen in the area." Angel disliked that the civilians weren't mentioned. It was as if they were second in their mind.

"Spartan out." He ended the communications and left the beacon running.

Climbing out of the Pelican seemed a harder task than he initially thought it would be. Lynn reached down and grabbed his shoulders, trying to help him pull out of the hole. However, she didn't really help at all, only got more in the way. Angel just didn't have the heart to tell her.

Once he climbed out and jumped down, he helped Lynn jump on his back and held his Covenant Carbine firmly. "Well, Lynn, it looks like things are turning around for us."

…

The colonists were extremely skilled at setting up camp. The cave was simply a cave from the exterior, but the interior was setup like an underground city. The colonists setup areas of water and food storage, paths lined with small torches, and they took some crystals to reflect and refract the light of the torches to great effect. As Lynn and Angel walked through the mini-town, they were amazed at the patterns that seemingly came from nowhere in the setup of the tents. In the area they were, the ground was mostly flat, and the entrance was up a long incline and twisted around so the torchlight was invisible from the outside.

"Well done, everyone," Angel said. He grabbed the people's attention. The majority of them were located inside the cave now, since he had given them an hour time table to remain outside. Dusk was quickly approaching, and they couldn't risk being found outside with the Brutes lurking about. "Once darkness falls, everyone must remain in the deepest parts of the cave, staying with the camp. I'll guard the entrance of the cave, and if they get past me, you are to run deeper into the cave. It's a maze, I know, but you'll live longer than if you face those Brutes."

The people agreed with him, and looked to him for leadership.

"With that in mind," Angel continued, "I have contacted the UNSC, and they have sent a ship here for all of us to be here within 24 hours."

The people gladly shouted for joy, hugging one another, some of them crying. It was a beautiful sight, in the dim torchlight of the cave interior.

"So get your rest, everyone." He waved, and walked to the entrance to secure it.

…

"That's great," Lynn said, following Angel.

Angel glanced at her and said, "You need to stay with them."

"You know I won't."

"I don't care. You're safer inside the cave."

"I'm not leaving you alone," She pouted.

"Get in the cave, Lynn."

"No!"

"Come on, I don't want to argue with you."

Her eyes were getting teary, and Angel relented. "Fine. But stay with me."

"That's the plan," She said, wiping her eyes.

They both walked to the entrance, and saw that the sunset was already upon them. The sky was on fire with red and orange, the clouds themselves being ignited by the red glow of a setting sun.

"Pretty," Lynn said.

Angel agreed, "Yeah."

Lynn looked over at the man, whose helmet reflected the sky he was peering at. She asked, "You haven't been here that long, have you?"

"No," He said, frankly. "You're a lot smarter than your age."

"I don't get why the ship was covered in plants."

"Simple. I crashed it into soft ground. It buried itself under the plants."

She sat quietly next to him. It was peaceful looking at the sunset.

"Lynn, you need to understand," Angel started, "I can't guarantee you'll ne all right."

"I know, but I'm sure you'll do fine." The girl put her back against the wall, and faced the man. "You came here after you fought them, didn't you?"

Angel nodded, "Right after. They didn't notice the small ships, only going for the large ones."

"But you couldn't get over here with just that ship."

"Right. I got a ride to this planet. I wanted a new start."

She asked, "Why?"

"War is hell, Lynn," Angel told her, plainly. "It's glamorized, like it's some heroic act. But in reality, I had no choice. I never had a choice. Do you think I wanted to fight?" He answered his own question, "Not at all."

"But you protected us here!" She shouted.

Angel held his hand up, palm forward, "Quiet. You want the whole planet to hear you?"

"Sorry." She sheepishly shrank down against the wall.

Angel sighed, grasping the gun he had, "You're right. I helped you. It's different, though."

"How?"

"I had a choice, then. I have a choice now. I didn't have a choice in even becoming a fighter."

The young girl asked him, "If you had a choice, would you do it again?"

The man stood up, and paced. He thought to himself, "Probably."

"Why?"

He glanced at her. The girl was curious, and it was adorable. He walked over to the girl and patted her head with his hand. He didn't answer her question, but he meant that action to be the answer: if he never did it all again, he'd never have met her.

…

Lynn was asleep. "You must have been tired", he said to her, quietly. He took off his cloak and wrapped it around her, giving her some warmth. Then, Angel removed his canteen and left it beside her. He held the Covenant Carbine up, and used its scope to look out into the forest before the cave. It was getting dark, the dusk moving into night.

"Somewhere around here- " a voice said in the forest. It was clearly in the Covenant language, and the deep voice indicated the speaker was a Brute.

Angel dashed out of the cave, wearing his full Spartan armor uncovered by his lack of a cloak. He held out the Carbine again, using it to scan the forest for movement. He saw them, between the cave and the ship.

"The tracks scatter all over. I can not tell…"

"Idiot! They are somewhere here. Which direction did they go?"

"I… I can not tell."

Angel saw them, about ten Brutes altogether. They weren't alone, however, as they had three Grunts scurrying below them. The Brutes forced the Grunts to carry the extra ammunition and grenades, while they carried the weapons.

"The tracks are in all directions, I do not know which one to follow."

"Then pick one," The white furred Brute said. His arm had a cut on it, left from an Energy Sword. It had all but healed. "We must find these humans before the ship gets here!"

"We still have a whole day before the ship gets here."

"I know that." The white Brute smashed his hammer against a nearby tree, splintering the wood and turning the bark on the outside into pulp. "But I have been getting reports from all over that something is going on. We must act with caution."

"What kind of reports?" One of the Grunts asked.

"That is none of your concern," The white Brute said.

Angel zoomed in on the white Brute. If he could kill it, the others would have no option but to scatter. With the Brute's head in his sights, he pulled the trigger.

The green bolt shot out and smashed into the helmet of the Brute. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough.

"There!" The Brute shouted, pointing in the direction of Angel.

The Brutes opened fire with what looked like a bladed grenade launcher. They fired in groups of four, and launched the bombs into the forest near Angel. The explosions destroyed the trees and bushes near him, sending bark and leaves high into the air. Angel saw a chance: the Grunts had no weapons. He fired at them, and caught one of the Grunts by his grenades. The grenades began to beep, and the Grunt exclaimed, "Uh oh!"

Suddenly, the Grunt exploded, igniting the Grunt next to him. Both of them took out all but three of the Brutes: the white Brute and two of his men. That seemed to even the odds.

"Messenger," A deep voice called from the entrance of the cave. "Quickly!"

As Angel ran towards it, dodging the return fire from the Brutes' grenade launchers, he saw four Elites standing at the cave. The Elites were armed with their Plasma Rifles and Energy Swords. He was preparing to fire, when he noticed one of them was the Major, and Lynn was with him. The Brutes behind him were confused, unsure where he went.

"You're alive?" Angel asked him.

"I could ask you the same," The Major answered. "The Covenant is in chaos right now. We have a chance to save you and your people." Angel assumed he meant that the Covenant on the planet were in chaos.

Angel asked, "Why would you do that?"

"I owe you that much," He told him, "Besides, I want to repay that Brute what I owe him." He turned his head, showing a large bruise on the side of his head. "That fool thought he killed me with one hit."

The human man looked down, and saw Lynn wearing his cloak. It was much too long for her, and so dragged several feet behind her. "Lynn, be careful not to trip on that." He was joking, of course, mocking her.

Lynn crossed her arms.

"We do not have long," the Major continued, "The Brutes you left alive will be coming for this place. They are not completely stupid."

"I know. And with back up on the way-"

"Oh, I would not worry about that ship," the Elite said, "I contacted them after the Brutes left. They are coming tonight."


	8. Chapter Last Death and Pain

Halo: Innocence

By Renault Bordeaux

[Halo and all Halo characters, fictional technologies, creatures, and locations are properties of Bungie Studios, 343 Industries, and Microsoft. This is intended as a fan-based story, not to make any money, but to show appreciation for those properties.]

Chapter Last – Death and Pain

"But if they come tonight, how will that help us?" Angel asked the Elite standing next to him. They were at the entrance of the cave, facing out, with their weapons ready.

The Elite Major checked the plasma rifle he was holding, it was a red plasma variant typically used by Brutes. "They are bringing me help, to quell these animals."

"What happened to your Captain?"

"He was eliminated by the Brutes." The Major looked upset, so far as Angel understood Elite behavior. The humanoid pointed at the tree line, "Incoming!"

Four small orbs flew swiftly through the air at the opening of the cave. In the night air, it was difficult to se where they came from, but their trajectory was clear: straight at the group protecting the entrance.

Angel dove behind a large stalagmite, and the Major landed behind him. As the explosions continued, rocks and crystal began to fall from the ceiling. The Major popped out and began to fire red blasts of plasma at the tree line. Every time he shot, the cave was illuminated with a red glow, contrasted by the bright orange explosions from the grenades.

"We need to push forward!" Angel shouted to the Major. Angel fired the entirety of his clip at the Brutes, though he didn't see any of them. It was a stupid strategy, since he had only the one gun, but he noticed Lynn was out in the open and needed to give her a chance to hide. With the cover fire, she was able to get behind the two Elites on the other wall of the save. The Elites stationed across from them opened fire, their blue plasma bolts not aiming at any observable target.

The Major dropped behind him, his gun having overheated. "And expose ourselves?"

"Our choice is clear: either go out and hunt them or push further into the cave."

The explosions stopped, and the entire group glanced out from their cover to see what had happened. A large white Brute slammed a giant metal object into the two Elites crouched opposite from the Major and Angel. They were completely smashed. Lynn was crying loudly, and the Brute glanced over to her, with a wildness in his eyes.

"No!" The Major snatched his energy sword and sprinted at the Brute. The animal raised the hammer, ready to drop it on the young girl's head. As he brought the hammer down, he instead hit the Major's energy sword, which knocked the Major back.

"Take the girl and go!" The Major shouted, standing up.

"Where?"

"Into the cave. I'll hold him here and get you when it is done." The Major ran at the Brute, whose hammer was able to intercept his strike.

Angel ran to Lynn, dropping his weapons and scooping her up and running. It was much too dangerous for her. As he went deeper into the cave, the people were gathered in a large mass, fear plastered on all their faces. He dropped Lynn amidst them and said, "The Brutes are outside. We have help from the Elites, but we're out of ammo."

The people gasped and began to ask various questions, all at once. Angel stopped them, saying, "Just take everything. Gather it all up and go deeper into the cave."

…

"This is the UNSC Rahab, calling the Spartan unit." A radio transmission came in through Angel's helmet. He was running back towards the entrance, seeing the sparks of the Major's energy sword and the blasts from the Brute's hammer.

"This is the Spartan unit. Go ahead."

"We have encountered a friendly Covenant ship in orbit, offering assistance to your people." Angel was shocked; he didn't think his actions with the Major were that important.

The radio continued, "They're calling themselves Drive of Avarice, and said they're willing to assist in your cleanup. We came early on their request."

"Clean up?"

"Yes. You have problems with Brutes, correct? They're willing to help."

Angel located the two Elites that the Brute had smashed, and grabbed both of their plasma rifles. He saw that the two other Brutes were watching the Major fight with their leader, so he opened fire. Before they were able to raise their weapons, Angel had planted several bolts of plasma into the center of their skulls. The blue light from his guns distracted the Brute and Elite who were fighting.

The Major said, "You're out of men."

"As are you," He replied to him.

Angel said, "Not quite. A human ship and a Covenant ship here to assist the Major are in orbit. You're out of options." He pointed the plasma weapons at the Brute, "Surrender and lay down your weapon."

"Never!" The Brute shouted, swinging his hammer at the Elite. Caught off guard, the Major was struck on the opposite side of his face as before, sending him flying back into the cave. Angel's weapons erupted, decimating the Brute's face. A gasp could be heard, originating from a young girl in the shadows. She ran to the Elite, who looked over at her, blood dripping from his mouth.

He said, "Do not look at me, child, in my dishonor." He then looked to Angel, who walked over to the Elite's side. The Major continued, "We were told by the Prophets that your people were unclean. We were told you would not know honor. Once our people began dealing with yours, we realized how wrong it was. I often asked myself why they did not admit your people into our Covenant."

Angel answered, "I don't know."

"Nor do I. But here I am dying, protecting humans." He coughed, the blood pooling below him. "I regret that you never got to see the sunset of the triple-suns. A glorious sight. All of my people hold it in their hearts." He coughed again. "Promise me you will remain a friend of my people."

The Elite raised a hand to Angel's arm, grasping it firmly. Angel nodded, "I will remain their friend."

The Major nodded, and said, "I swear on the blood of my fathers, that you have shown more honor than any race save my own." He coughed, and saw the girl, who was crying. He closed his eyes, not wanting to let her see his eyes as he died.

…

It was quiet through the forest, and the cave was now silent. Angel carried Lynn, who said nothing. He carried her into the cave, where he told everyone it was safe again. They cheered, smiling and elated, but Angel could not smile, he could not be happy.

The people decided to rebuild their town with what they had. They had a forest and carpenters, and could fashion homes out of the very countryside itself. They sent a few of their own to go find the other colonists and tell them that they had found a location for their new home.

Angel walked out into the night, Lynn still on his back.

"Do you think the Major went to heaven?" She asked.

Angel looked away from her, "I don't know."

She asked, "Why did he have to die?"

"I don't know."

It wasn't the answers she was looking for. He was just upset that she had to see such an event, to feel such loss as only the cold hand of death could bring. He didn't want to talk to her yet, not until it had started to fade in her memories.

Overhead, a large purple ship began to hover, a beam of light shining down from it. They were over the Pelican's crash site, so Angel ran as fast as he could to meet them. There were four Elites, standing in a circle, looking around the area. When Angel emerged from the forest, they all faced him, weapons held high. When they saw him, they lowered their weapons.

"Human," A white armored one said, "We have come from the ship Drive of Avarice to assist." He spoke in English.

Angel told them, "The Brutes are dead. Kill by the remaining Elites, who also died. The last Brute killed the Major, a dear friend of ours." Lynn hugged his back tighter.

"We will take their bodies," the Elite said, motioning for the others to do as he said. "You honor us in helping our fight, human."

"Your fight?"

"The Great Betrayal. The Brutes have taken our position of honor in the Covenant," the Elite spoke with authority. "It is the reason we are here to help you, because you have helped us." The Elites beside him asked Angel where the bodies were. He pointed to the cave, and warned them that there was plenty of blood. They decided to send something else to get the bodies instead of defiling themselves.

As the Elite and the Spartan spoke, a human Pelican landed near their position. The humans ran over, weapons drawn, to the man standing with the Elites.

One of the Marines asked, "Everything all right, sir?"

"Yes," Angel said, "everything's fine."

He placed Lynn down, and asked her, "Do you want to stay with the Colonists, or come with me?"

"I want to go with you," She said.

"You'll see more death and pain. Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," She said, unable to smile.

He held her hand and went to the Pelican with her. The forest was glowing with lights from the humans and Covenant, all of whom were lending technology to the colonists to rebuild their homes with.

Lynn asked Angel, with an adult sound in her voice, "What's your real name?"

"I don't have one anymore," He said, helping her strap into the Pelican. He sat next to her, and said, "Other than the name 'Angel'."

As the Pelican took off, Angel glanced at Lynn, expecting her to be either upset or smiling. She did neither; instead, she had a look of resolve on her face. He realized the shock of seeing the death of a friend, the pain of losing a person she cared about, and seeing a good friend kill several living beings was enough to deprive her of her innocence.

[Thank you for reading. I am Renault Bordeaux, and I hope you enjoyed it. In the last chapter, I wanted a sudden end because of how sudden death can feel. I wanted you to feel chills as the story ends with its very title: Innocence.

Expect a new story in the same universe soon! I need to take a break due to responsibilities in life, but then I promise to upload a new story.]


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